1. In the space below, describe the stasis at the beginning of Split Second. In other words, “Where are we?” “When is it (time, day, and year)?” “Who are the people involved?” “What is the dramatic situation in which the characters find themselves as the play unfolds?”
The play starts off in the West Side of Manhattan (Eleventh Avenue), assumed to take place in the 1980s or 1990s. It is on July 4th in the evening. A white man named William H. Willis is spotted stealing a car, and Val Johnson, a black cop, addresses this. Val prepares to arrest him for this, even taking away Willis' gun and handcuffing him on the stop. Willis, however, becomes increasingly panicked and starts spewing racial slurs and insults, quickly angering Val. Soon enough, Val becomes blind with rage and takes his anger out on Willis and kills him with a single gun-shot to
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play? Be careful when citing the intrustion, it may not be where you initially think it is.
Though the intrusion initially seems to be when Val kills Willis, I actually believe it is when Val lies about what happened to Parker. This breaks the stasis in the sense that it sets up the dramatic action and internal conflict. Once Val lies, it sets the plot rolling because Val must decide if what he did was right or not. This moment sets up friction in the play since it leaves the audience wondering what will happen. This is the part of the play that introduces dramatic questions and stimulates dramatic action.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor which is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place?
The events take place at this moment because Val does not want to be punished because what he had done was illegal since he had Willis cuffed and at an advantage. Because of this, Val wants to avoid confrontation and his potential punishment and does so by lying to Parker, who writes down the events on paper for the court. He clearly knows what he did was wrong, so the unique factor is his want to stay out of trouble.
4. State the dramatic questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
Will Val be able to tell the truth or will he continue to lie to save himself from punishment?
5. Use Val to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is, dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what Val wants (NOTE: In Split Second the wants of Val are in flux and he is being swayed by his father, his wife, his friend, and his colleague at work. His wants seem to change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that the character encounters.
Val wants to avoid punishment but also wants his father's respect. There is a conflict on his wants and many different obstacles.
a) Himself: he wants to avoid punishment because it is his future that would take a toll if he were to tell the truth. On the other hand, he seems to struggle internally, not knowing what he even wants himself. Because of his indecision, he is an obstacle to his desires precisely because he doesn't know what he wants more. He also seems to be a little insecure and dependent on his father's approval.
b) His father: though Val wants to escape facing jail time and what not, his father clearly shows his disapproval and anger when he finds out what Val had done. He especially doesn't like the fact that he lied on the police reports. Because of this, Val faces a hard struggle of what he wants. He wants his father's support but won't get it if he lies in court.
c) The law: Val clearly holds his father opinion to be very valuable, but he knows what he did was illegal. Because what he did was illegal, he would have to face jail time/punishment for what he had done. Because of this scary possibility, Val finds it hard to tell the truth in court. That being said, it is hard to follow what his father wants because he still wants to avoid this punishment.
d) fate: no one in this play seems to be particularly faithful, and there is not much evidence for fate or natural forces. Because of this, there is not much evidence for this type of obstacle.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Split Second.
The most theatrical moments in this play are perhaps when he talks to Alea, his wife, and his father, and what he says in court at the end of the play, Rusty. His initial moment with Alea is intense and almost desperate. Because they are married, there should be relatively no secrets between them. Alea wants to know what had happened, and Val ends up opening to her. This is also significant because it is the first moment that Val finally says the truth of that night. This moment signifies fervor and emphasis. The second theatrical moment is when he finally opens up to his father. This moment is filled with ferocity and dramatic action because it also sets up an even deeper conflict since Rusty wants Val to tell the truth. Because Val depends on his father's approval, he is struck with the dilemma of avoiding punishment or getting his father's approval. Perhaps the most theatrical moment is when he is finally in court, though.This moment serves as both the climax and resolution because the audience is desperate to know what Val will do at this point. When he finally continues with the lie, it shows the end of the play. This moment is just so quick that it is dramatic and theatrical.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Split Second. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”)
The fact that it took only one gunshot to kill Willis, rather than the expected two gunshots (according to Parker). This signifies how certain Val was when he shot Willis. It shows how quick he was to kill since it only took a "split second." This also signifies that the gunshot is not an accident, like how Val had said. Clearly, this shows a lie and serves as foreshadowing for the end of the play as well.
Val's carefulness in Vietnam. This shows what Val was like during the war and how meticulous he was. Many men depended on him, so he had to be extremely careful. If he messed up once or if a decision was a "split second" too late, he would have been responsible for many deaths (possibly over 40 lives).
Val's final decision on what to say in court. This essentially depicts his priority of avoiding punishment for murdering Willis. This also destroys Val on the inside because he knows it is wrong of him to lie, and he still wants his father's approval. In the end, Val becomes broken and a completely different man from who he was before.
The title of the play helps us understand the images because these images can occur in a "split second" or a very short amount of time, which shows just how mercurial decisions can be. For example, if Val had waited a little longer, he could have decided to spare Willis or could have been responsible for many lives when he was serving in the war. Also, it could have taken even a split second for Val to decide to continue to lie or to reveal the truth. It is completely possible that he could have just told the truth in the end.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Split Second.
Race, love, impulsiveness, justice, crime, lying, family, approval, death, law enforcement, and internal conflict.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with the dramatic action in Split Second?
Family is an extremely important aspect of the dramatic action in the play. In fact, family is essentially what drives the dramatic action. Rusty, Val's father, shows his disapproval of Val's actions and wants him to make up for them by telling the truth in court. Had Rusty never thought this way, then there would be no internal conflict/dramatic action for Val to constantly worry about. Val is so desperate for his father's approval that he is willing to risk the rest of his career and future for it, which create the dramatic action and tension in the play.
The play starts off in the West Side of Manhattan (Eleventh Avenue), assumed to take place in the 1980s or 1990s. It is on July 4th in the evening. A white man named William H. Willis is spotted stealing a car, and Val Johnson, a black cop, addresses this. Val prepares to arrest him for this, even taking away Willis' gun and handcuffing him on the stop. Willis, however, becomes increasingly panicked and starts spewing racial slurs and insults, quickly angering Val. Soon enough, Val becomes blind with rage and takes his anger out on Willis and kills him with a single gun-shot to
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play? Be careful when citing the intrustion, it may not be where you initially think it is.
Though the intrusion initially seems to be when Val kills Willis, I actually believe it is when Val lies about what happened to Parker. This breaks the stasis in the sense that it sets up the dramatic action and internal conflict. Once Val lies, it sets the plot rolling because Val must decide if what he did was right or not. This moment sets up friction in the play since it leaves the audience wondering what will happen. This is the part of the play that introduces dramatic questions and stimulates dramatic action.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor which is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place?
The events take place at this moment because Val does not want to be punished because what he had done was illegal since he had Willis cuffed and at an advantage. Because of this, Val wants to avoid confrontation and his potential punishment and does so by lying to Parker, who writes down the events on paper for the court. He clearly knows what he did was wrong, so the unique factor is his want to stay out of trouble.
4. State the dramatic questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
Will Val be able to tell the truth or will he continue to lie to save himself from punishment?
5. Use Val to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is, dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what Val wants (NOTE: In Split Second the wants of Val are in flux and he is being swayed by his father, his wife, his friend, and his colleague at work. His wants seem to change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that the character encounters.
Val wants to avoid punishment but also wants his father's respect. There is a conflict on his wants and many different obstacles.
a) Himself: he wants to avoid punishment because it is his future that would take a toll if he were to tell the truth. On the other hand, he seems to struggle internally, not knowing what he even wants himself. Because of his indecision, he is an obstacle to his desires precisely because he doesn't know what he wants more. He also seems to be a little insecure and dependent on his father's approval.
b) His father: though Val wants to escape facing jail time and what not, his father clearly shows his disapproval and anger when he finds out what Val had done. He especially doesn't like the fact that he lied on the police reports. Because of this, Val faces a hard struggle of what he wants. He wants his father's support but won't get it if he lies in court.
c) The law: Val clearly holds his father opinion to be very valuable, but he knows what he did was illegal. Because what he did was illegal, he would have to face jail time/punishment for what he had done. Because of this scary possibility, Val finds it hard to tell the truth in court. That being said, it is hard to follow what his father wants because he still wants to avoid this punishment.
d) fate: no one in this play seems to be particularly faithful, and there is not much evidence for fate or natural forces. Because of this, there is not much evidence for this type of obstacle.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Split Second.
The most theatrical moments in this play are perhaps when he talks to Alea, his wife, and his father, and what he says in court at the end of the play, Rusty. His initial moment with Alea is intense and almost desperate. Because they are married, there should be relatively no secrets between them. Alea wants to know what had happened, and Val ends up opening to her. This is also significant because it is the first moment that Val finally says the truth of that night. This moment signifies fervor and emphasis. The second theatrical moment is when he finally opens up to his father. This moment is filled with ferocity and dramatic action because it also sets up an even deeper conflict since Rusty wants Val to tell the truth. Because Val depends on his father's approval, he is struck with the dilemma of avoiding punishment or getting his father's approval. Perhaps the most theatrical moment is when he is finally in court, though.This moment serves as both the climax and resolution because the audience is desperate to know what Val will do at this point. When he finally continues with the lie, it shows the end of the play. This moment is just so quick that it is dramatic and theatrical.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Split Second. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”)
The title of the play helps us understand the images because these images can occur in a "split second" or a very short amount of time, which shows just how mercurial decisions can be. For example, if Val had waited a little longer, he could have decided to spare Willis or could have been responsible for many lives when he was serving in the war. Also, it could have taken even a split second for Val to decide to continue to lie or to reveal the truth. It is completely possible that he could have just told the truth in the end.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Split Second.
Race, love, impulsiveness, justice, crime, lying, family, approval, death, law enforcement, and internal conflict.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with the dramatic action in Split Second?
Family is an extremely important aspect of the dramatic action in the play. In fact, family is essentially what drives the dramatic action. Rusty, Val's father, shows his disapproval of Val's actions and wants him to make up for them by telling the truth in court. Had Rusty never thought this way, then there would be no internal conflict/dramatic action for Val to constantly worry about. Val is so desperate for his father's approval that he is willing to risk the rest of his career and future for it, which create the dramatic action and tension in the play.